Grant allows for fire purchase in Greene County

WHITE HALL — An Illinois State Fire Marshall’s Office grant came just in time for two Greene County fire protection districts.

White Hall and Roodhouse fire protection districts each received around $22,000 from the Small Equipment Grant Program to buy self-contained breathing apparatus tanks used by firefighters when working in areas with potentially toxic smoke, such as during car fires.

White Hall’s tanks were about 15 years old and could no longer be tested, meaning they were in dire need of replacement, White Hall Fire Chief Garry Sheppard said. They were preparing to order new tanks, though they had no idea how they would pay for them, when they were told they were receiving the grant.

“We had been waiting for several months to find out if we had gotten it,” Sheppard said. “We ended up applying to buy $22,000 of SCBA tanks and I was beginning to wonder how we were ever going to come up with the money to buy them.”

The Small Equipment Grant Program grants had not been available for several years. When they were offered about six months ago, Sheppard applied. He was excited and pleased to receive it, because it is 100 percent fully funded and requires no tax money as matching funds, he said.

“We just became a fire district within the last six months or so and we’re still working on that,” Sheppard said. “We have not received and will not receive any tax money for a while. The city is paying all the bills right now and they didn’t have the money to buy these tanks … I think the Fire Marshall’s Office did a good job giving them to departments that actually need it. Sometimes money goes where it’s not needed. My budget is around $100,000 and $22,000 would be a huge chunk of it.”

The money will allow White Hall to buy 20 new SCBA units.

In Roodhouse, which received $21,760, the grant will fund the purchase of 16 new units.

“Without this, we wouldn’t be able to spend a lot of extra money, if any, in our first couple years as a district,” Sheppard said. “This will free up some money for some much-needed equipment.”

Nick Draper can be reached at 217-245-6121, ext. 1223, or on Twitter @nick_draper.